Kittle hopes to break T.O.’s prestigious 49ers receiving records

Kittle hopes to break T.O.’s prestigious 49ers receiving records originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SANTA CLARA — Tight end George Kittle has one season remaining on his contract with the 49ers, and that might be all he needs to reach a couple of his goals.

But he made it clear he does not want his time with the 49ers to end there.

Kittle on Friday said he wants to eclipse Pro Football Hall of Famer Terrell Owens to rank No. 2 on the 49ers’ all-time lists of receptions and yards receiving.

“I don’t think I’ll ever catch Jerry Rice on anything,” Kittle said. “But that’s totally fine. I’m OK with that. I don’t want to play that long.”

Kittle currently ranks third in franchise history, behind Rice and Owens, with 528 receptions for 7,241 receiving yards.

In eight seasons with San Francisco, Owens caught 592 passes for 8,572 yards.

Kittle is one of the few star players on the 49ers who is living up to expectations this season as San Francisco staggers toward the finish line with a 6-9 record.

He leads the team with 68 catches for 967 yards and eight touchdowns.

Kittle is within striking distance of Owens. He said his annual goal is to catch around 75 passes for 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns.

With 33 yards receiving in the final two games of the season, Kittle will reach 1,000 yards for the fourth time in his career.

The only other tight ends in NFL history to accomplish that feat are Travis Kelce (seven), and Tony Gonzalez, Rob Gronkowski and Jason Witten (four, apiece).

Kittle is on pace for the Pro Football Hall of Fame through this stage in his career. But he said he does not look at where he stands among the all-time greats at his position.

“I’ll look back on that whenever I’m done playing. It is what it is,” Kittle said. “I’m just very excited I’ve got to spend eight years with the San Francisco 49ers, hopefully continue to play here because it’s a storied franchise, and hopefully I can eventually catch T.O.“

The 49ers will face a decision with Kittle, 31, in the offseason. He has one season remaining on the five-year, $75 million contract he signed prior to the 2020 season. He is scheduled to make $15 million in salary and bonuses in 2025.

It would be a reasonable demand for his representation to push for a contract extension in the offseason to add more years and guaranteed money to his contract.

Kittle declined to address that topic on Friday.

“You can ask me that in the offseason,” he said.

He said he wants to continue to play football until the wheels fall off or his wife tells him it’s time to retire. Kittle also made it clear that he wishes to remain with the 49ers for at least several seasons to come.

“I love where I’m at,” said Kittle, a fifth-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. “It’s a great place.”

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